Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
Louisiana Tech puts its eight-game home winning streak on the line tonight when the Bulldogs host Kennesaw State inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court.
Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. and the game can be heard on 107.5 FM with Malcolm Butler and Jack Thigpen providing a call of the action.
After dropping its first five conference road games, LA Tech (17-7, 6-5) picked up its first league win away from home in an 82-71 victory at FIU this past Saturday. The Bulldogs never trailed in the game, leading by as much as 18 points in the first half.
The Bulldogs found their offense again, shooting 60.8 percent from the field versus the Panthers which was their second-best shooting performance of the season. It was also the third-best shooting percentage ever for LA Tech in a CUSA game. The ‘Dogs currently rank 44th in the country in field goal percentage (47.8).
The story of the game was the play of AJ Bates. The freshman from Houston, Texas made his first collegiate start and ended up playing the entire 40 minutes while registering career highs in points (19), made field goals (8), assists (7), and steals (3). He became the first LA Tech freshman since 2023 to play an entire game and his 19 points was the second most scored by a freshman in their first career start since 1997.
Kennesaw State (14-10, 6-5) is in a two-way tie with Louisiana Tech for fifth in the conference standings with a 6-5 record. The Owls are coming off a four-game home stand where it defeated FIU and WKU while falling narrowly to Liberty and most recently Middle Tennessee. Kennesaw State found itself down 15 at halftime to the Blue Raiders but stormed back with a shot to win it at the buzzer coming up short in a 76-75 loss.
Of KSU’s 11 conference games so far, only four have come away from home. The Owls are 1-3 in league road games so far with the lone win coming at New Mexico State.
Kennesaw State has proven to be one of the top rebounding teams in the country. They rank top 20 in the nation in every rebounding category — rebound margin (7.5), rebounds per game (42.50), defensive rebounds per game (28.54), and offensive rebounds per game (13.96).
Adrian Wooley and Simeon Cottle are the top scoring duo in CUSA, averaging 18.9 and 18.1 points per game this season, respectively. The tandem accounts for 47.4 percent of KSU’s scoring.
Kennesaw State won the first ever meeting between the two programs back on Jan. 18 in Kennesaw, Georgia. The Owls prevailed, 78-76.
